Background information

This EMN Inform summarises the main findings of the EMN study «Integration of beneficiaries of international protection into the labour market in Belgium and in the EU». The Study was based on contributions from EMN National Contact Points in 24 Member States (the national reports are available here).

The overall aim of the Study was to analyse Member States’ policies and practices to facilitate the labour market integration of beneficiaries of international/humanitarian protection.

Inform: some findings

• All Member States have codified the legal right for beneficiaries to access the labour market. But in practice, beneficiaries first have to meet certain administrative conditions (e.g. have a residence permit and/or work permit), which can delay their access to the labour market.
• In comparison to other migrant groups, beneficiaries are often confronted with additional practical obstacles when accessing the labour market (e.g. psychological and physical distress, lack of documentation proving qualifications, etc.). Such practical obstacles underline the necessity of tailored employment-related support measures specifically targeting beneficiaries.
• All Member States provide beneficiaries access to a wide range of employment-related support measures (e.g. language courses, orientation services, employment services, etc.).
• The large majority of Member States provide access to measures in a similar manner to all TCNs. Several others combine generic measures for migrants with specific tailored measures to beneficiaries. Only a few Member States provide measures tailored exclusively to beneficiaries (but there is an increasing trend of policy initiatives to develop more tailored measures in response to the current migration/refugee crisis).
• Good practices in the provision of employment-related support measures include: linking language learning to the job market to increase the likelihood that learning supports employment; provision of tailored vocational educational training which help to increase employment participation rates; provision of tailored schemes for the recognition of qualifications; provision of additional housing assistance to beneficiaries (e.g. prolonged stay at reception facilities, transitional facilities, etc.).
• Beneficiaries face numerous obstacles to access employment-related support measures in all Member States. These include the fact that not all support measures are widely available to all beneficiaries (e.g. because they are offered on a project-basis, are only offered in certain geographical areas, etc.) ; financial costs ; lack of language proficiency ; low educational levels, etc.
• The (limited) statistics available on the employment rate of beneficiaries indicate that their participation rates are low in the first four or less years of residence, but increase over time. After 20+ years the employment rate becomes almost the same for all categories of migrants.
• There are differences in the treatment between the various categories of beneficiaries when it comes to labour market access and access to employment-related support measures (e.g. beneficiaries of humanitarian protection are in some Member States subject to more administrative conditions in comparison to refugees/beneficiaries of subsidiary protection).

Please find additional information in the attached Inform.